Supporting structure for air-brake equipment



UP QRTING STRUCTURE Foa AIR BRAKE EQUIPMENT 1923 2 'Sheets-Shea?,

l I N V ENTOR. MM

BY My @uw ATTORNEY.

Filed March 1'7.

IIIII MW zum w24@ R. J. MEARS SUPPORTING STRUCTURE FOR AIR BRAKE EQUIPMENT 4 Filed March 17. 1923 2 Sheets-shew. 2

l N VLH TOR.

)4 A TTORNEY.

Patented May 2Q, 1924.'

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ROBERT J. MEARS, OF YOENKERS, N EW YORK.

SUPPRTING STRUCTURE FOR AIR-BRE EQUIPMENT.

Application filed March 17, 1923. Serial No. 625,715.

To all whom t may conccm:

Be it known that ll, lRoBEn'r J. MnAns, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of /Yonkers and county of Vestchester, State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Supporting Structures for Air-Brake Equipment, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to supporting structures `for air brake equipment; and particularly to an improved means for supporting the main air reservoirs and cooling pipes upon a locomotive.

My invention has for its objects: the provision of means for combining, in one unit,

theair reservoir, and the radiating or cooling pipes or coils associated therewith; the provision of means whereby said pipes may be so located with respect to the reservoir yas to provide for automatic drainage of liquid to the reservoir; the provision of means,

wherebysaid pipes and reservoir may be accurately positioned and more securely fastened than in many of the structuresv heretofore employed; the provision of means whereby the said pipes may be located under the running board of a locomotive, in a space not heretofore fully utilized and "in position to be protected from the heat of the sun and from damage by contact with extraneous objects, and to simplify and improve generally the form and arrangement of devices of this character.

One form which my invention may take 85 is shown in the accompanying drawing whereinl Fig. l is a View, in side elevation, of a portion of a locomotive to which my invention is applied. 1@ Fig. 2 is a plan view of a, locomotive equipped with my invention.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional View of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5' is a view taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 3.

Fig 6 is an enlarged detailed view of a portion of one of the brackets which 1 employ.

Figs. 7 and 8 are plan and sectional views respectively of one of .the clamping plates. Referring now more particularly to Fig. y 1, which is a view showing a portion of the left-hand side of a locomotive boiler 9, 10

is an air pump which may be of conventional forin and located to the front of the locomotive cab (not shown). The air pump 10 has connection, through a pipe 11, with radiating or cooling pipes 12 that are shown @o more clearly in Fig. 2 and are provided with return ends or connections. 13.' The pipes 12 communicate with the interior of an air reservoir 14, through a coupling 15.

The pipes 12 serve as a cooling coil where- @e in moisture contained in air supplied from the pump 10 may be condensed. Owing to the pipes 12 being disposed in a horizontal plane, moisture condensed therein will fall, through the connection 15, into the reservoir it@ 14 from which accumulated liquid may be drained from time to time through a drain cock 16. y

The reservoir 14 and the cooling pipes 12 are secured to the locomotive boiler 9 by 5?@ means of brackets 17, one of such brackets being provided adjacent to each end of the reservoir. Each bracket is provided at its upper endwith a perforated lug 18 for the reception of studs 19 that are threaded into the side of the locomotive boiler as shownmore clearly in Fig. 3. At their lower ends, the brackets are provided with slots 20, as shown in Fig. 6, and held in position permitting the application of the e9 brackets to studs of non-uniform spacing, and also permitting the placing of the brackets after the studs 19 and 20 have been applied to the boiler, notwithstanding the difference in distance between the studs 19 and 20 at their outer and inner ends respectively. The brackets 17 are provided with arcuate portions 21 intermediate their ends, within which the reservoir 14 may be held. l

The brackets 17 are each provided with horizontally extending portions 22 having recesses within which the pipes 12 may rest as shown in Fig. 3. The portions 22, at their outer ends, are slotted as shown in Fig. 4, for the reception of the upper ends of straps 23 that are held in place by means of bolts 24. The lower ends of the straps 23 are each held in place by a U-bolt 25 that extends through a boss 26. By this means the reservoir 14 is held securely in position with respect to the brackets 17.

Vhen the reservoir 14 has been secured in position upon the brackets and the pipes 12 placed thereabove, pipe clamps or plate 110 members 27 are placed in position upon the pipes and tightly secured in place, by means of bolts 28 that pass through the portion 22 of the bracket 17 and nuts 29 that lie within recesses 31 (Fig. 8) formed in the upper portions of the plate 27.

A running board 32 of the usual form may .then be'placed in position upon the plates 27 and secured in place by means of nuts 33 that engage the upper ends of the bolts 28.

A coupling 34 is provided at the forward end of the reservoir 14 to afford communication between the reservoir and a pipe 35 that extends across the forward portion of the boiler 9. At the opposite side of the boiler, the pipe 35 communicates with cool ing pipes 12a that are disposed in a horizontal plane above a reservoir 14B. The pipes 12a and thereservoir 14 are supported. from the right-hand side of the boiler 9 in the same manner as are the pipes 12 and the reservoir 14 heretofore described. Clamping plates 27 are of the same construction as the clamping plates 27 and a running board 32a may be secured thereto in the same manner as the running board 32 at the opposite side of the boiler.

The' pipes 12 serve to effect a still further cooling of the air which passes through the reservoir 14 and pipe 35 to the reservoir 14, and communicate with the'reservoir 14 through a coupling 36. A pipe 37 leads from the reservoir 14:a to an engineers brake valve, or other apparatus not shown.

The foregoing arrangement permits the assembling of the reservoir and cooling pipes Within a minimum amount of space; provides for effective drainage of the cooling pipes; the pipes are shielded from the sun, thus rendering them more edective to cool the fluid passing therethrough; the

brackets for supporting the reservoir and the pipes serve valso as supports for the running boards; the pipes are so located that they do not add to the over-all width of the locomotive and are not in danger of injury; the reservoir and pipes, together with the brackets, form a unitary structure which may be readily removed `from the locomotive Without disturbing other apparatus, and these parts are so located that there is' little interference With other parts and Iittings usually found on locomotives. Various other advantages Will be readily apparent toethose familiar with the art.

While I have shown and described my invention as applied to a locomotive, it may be employed in various other devices Where a simple and compact supporting structure for pipin and tanks is desired.

What claim is:-

1. The combination with a locomotive boiler, of brackets secured to said boiler, means on said brackets for supporting an Lacasse air reservoir, means on said brackets :tor supporting cooling pipes in a horizontal plane above the said reservoiry and pipe clamp members for holding the cooling pipes in position and serving as supports for a running board.

2. The combination with the running board, cooling pipes and air reservoir of a locomotive, of a bracket secured to the side of the locomotive, and means on said bracket for supporting said reservoir, pipes and running board in superposed relation.

3. The combination with the ruiming board, cooling pipes and air reservoir of a` locomotive, of a bracket detachably secured to the side of the locomotive, and means on said bracket for supporting said reservoir, pipes and running board in superposed relation, in the order last named.

4. The combination with a locomotive boiler, of brackets secured to saidv boiler, an air reservoir supported by said brackets, pipe clamp members on said brackets above the said reservoir, coolingv pipes supported by said clamp members, and means for securing a running board to said clamp members.

5. The combination with a locomotive boiler, of brackets detachably secured to said boiler, a reservoir supported adjacent to said brackets, pipe clamp structure carried by said brackets, cooling pipes supported in said clamp structure and communicating With said reservoir, and means for securing a running board to said clamp structure.

6. rlhe combination with a locomotive boiler, of brackets secured to said boiler, a reservoir carried by said brackets, pipe clamp structure on said brackets above said reservoir, cooling pipes supported in said structure, and means for securing a running board to said brackets;

7. The combination with a locomotive of a bracket secured thereto, an air reservoir carried by said bracket, and cooling pipes supported by said bracket in a horizontal plane above said reservoir.

8. rlihe combination with a locomotive, of an air reservoir, cooling pipes having communication with said reservoir7 a running board, and means for supporting said reservoir, cooling pipes and running board in superposed relation adjacent to one side of said locomotive.

9. The combination With a locomotive, of a bracket adapted to be secured thereto, and means on the bracket for supporting an air reservoir and cooling pipes.

10. A bracket adapted to be secured to a locomotive, means on the bracket for supporting an air reservoir, and other means thereon for supporting cooling pipes in a horizontal plane above said reservoir.

1l. rlhe combination with a locomotive provided with an air pump, ot an air reservoir supported adjacent to each side of the locomotive, cooling pipes disposed above each of said reservoirs, and 'in communication therewith, and a running board 'disposed above each group of said cooling pipes, one

of said reservoirs having communication with said pump through one set of said pipes and communicating with the-other reservoir through the other group of pipes.

12. The combination with a locomotive provided with an air pump, of an air reservoir supported adjacent to each side of the locomotive, and cooling pipes disposed in a horizontal plane above each of said reservoirs and in communication therewith, one

of said reservoirsi having communication with' said pump through one group of said pipes and communicating with the other reservoir through the otherV group ofpipes.

13. Cooling apparatus for fluids, comprising a reservoir, cooling pipes .through which Huid may pass to said reservoir, a second set of'cooling pipes through which Huid .may

pass from said reservoir, and a second reservvoirin communication with said second, set

[of cooling pipes, one of said set of pipes.

being disposed in a horizontal plane above one of the reservoirs.

1.4. A condenser structure comprising a reservoir and cooling pipes through which lsaid reservoir, and means for securing the said pipes and reservoir to said bracket.

16. A bracket adapted to be secured to a locomotive, meansbn the bracket for sup porting a reservoir, means on said bracket for support-ing a running board, and means thereon for supportingpipes disposed beneath said running board.

17. A bracket ada tedto be secured to a` locomotive, provide with means for supporting a running board, piping, and a reservoir, 1n superposed relation.

. 18.. A structure comprising 'a supportingv bracket, a reservoir secure to said bracket, means on said bracket for supporting a cover plate above said reservoir, and other means thereon for supporting pipes disposed between said reservoir and said cover member.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature this 10th day of March,

ROBERT J. MEARS. 

